Latch mechanism



March 10, 1953 A. F. LICKTEIG, JR 2,631,051

LATCH MECHANISM Filed June 3, 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 l'n van for A/berfF,L/c/(fe/g, Jr.

Affomgg March 10, 1953 A. F. LICKTEIG, JR

LATCH MECHANISM Filed June 3, 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 g /9 F fi mt 23' P5/n ven for A/berf F. L/ckfe/g, Jr.

% a M Affomex;

i which interfere with the use of the hands.

Patented Mar. 10, 1953 LATCH MECHANISM Albert F. Lickteig, Jr., GrandRapids, Mich., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Harloc ProductsCorporation, a corporation of Connecticut Application June 3, 1948,Serial No. 30,755

9 Claims.

This invention provides a door latch mechanism which may be installedwithout regard to the direction in which the door will swing. Thecharacteristics of the conventional door latch are such that it isadapted to engage a striker plate from one direction only. As a resultof this, the usual practice for the installation of these devices is toassemble them to the door at the time the door is hung in place. It isusual to provide such devices with a cross bar equipped with knobs orhandles to actuate a retracting mechanism which serves to withdraw thebolt from looking position. When these cross bars or equivalent membershave once been installed, it is no longer possible to rotate the entirelatch mechanism within its recess in the door. For these reasons, theinstallation of lock mechanisms in doors has been left entirely in thehands of the carpenter on the job, which is considerably more costlythan would be the case if the lock mechanism could be installed by themanufacturer of the doors at a station on a production line.

A latch embodying the present invention may be installed in a door atthe factory where the door is made. The adaption of the latch to aparticular door installation is preferably accomplished by theapplication of a minor part to the exterior of the lock mechanism by theworkman on the job. The application of this part merely serves to selectwhich side of the bolt is to operate as a locking surface, the otherside of the bolt serving as a ramp causing the bolt to retract when thedoor is pushed to a closed position.

To open a door which is provided with a conventional latch, it isnecessary to rotate the knob sufficiently to completely withdraw thebolt into the recess provided for it. When one is in a hurry, it may beburdensome to be forced to completely actuate the knob through itsentire travel; and it may also be extremely difficult to do so if onehappens to be carrying packages or other articles The present invention,however, has provided an arrangement for supporting the bolt in lockingposition only'when the bolt is at or near the outward extremity of itsmovement. When the hand operated actuating system has caused the bolt tobe slightly withdrawn from its locking position, the supporting meansceases to be effective, and permits the" bolt to be rotated slightly bya force tending to open the door. causes thelockin surface to assume aslant position, .andto .then act in much the same way as the oppositeface of the lock when the door is pushed closed. The force of thestriker plate This slight rotation 2 against a bolt which has assumedthis position provides a force tending to urge the bolt inwardly andthereby permit the door to be pulled wan open position before theactuating mechanism has completely retracted the bolt into its recess.

The mechanism which provides these general characteristics includes abolt which is adapted to travel from a locking position to a retractedposition, and return, within the confines of a passageway. At the outerextremity of this passageway a supporting structure is located which isin position to engage particular clamping surfaces upon the bolt as thebolt is urged outwardly into locking position by the action of suitablebiasing means. These supporting surfaces are preferably parallel to thepassageway, at least one of these supporting surfaces being relativelyshort with respect to the axis of this passageway in order that the boltmay be released from the combined effect of the support surfaces whenthe bolt'vhas been retracted a short distance from its normal lockingposition.

The preferred form of this invention provides a bolt which issymmetrical in form, and hasan outwardly converging locking portion. Itis preferred that the bolt be generally rectangularf'in cross section,with the converging characteristics accomplished by forming the boltwith two opposite sides lying along intersecting planes. The remainingtwo sides of the bolt are parallel. The angle of intersection of theaforementioned two planes has been found to be preferably in theneighborhood of 45 degrees. I

The bolt, in its simplest form, is also provided with another pair ofsurfaces, each of which'cooperates with one of the converging surfacesmentioned above. These cooperating surfaces are so placed relative tothe locking surface that a clamping action is possible between themwhich creates the necessary locking rigidity when these surfaces areengaged by the support means at the outer extremity of the boltpassageway. It is of course necessary that an auxiliary clamping surfacewhich is to cooperate with a locking surface must be disposed betweenperpendiculars to the ends of that portion of the locking surface whichis used as a clamping surface. The most convenient form for a bolt whichcomplies with these geometric requirements is to form the auxiliaryclamping surfaces parallel with the locking surfaces with which theycooperate, and allow them to intersect the locking surface with whichthey do not cooperate. This conformity provides a means for guiding theclamping surfaces into engagement with the support means due to theconpart of the front plate adjacent thereto.

permitted to the bolt in order to present? aslantz surface to thelocking face of the bolt if the door is then being urged to an openposition. This restricted rotatability is accomplished by the manner ofsupporting the bolt within the boltpassageway. Preferably, the: boit:slides within. the passageway, confined therein by the. contact. of theoutermost portions of the bolt with the walls of the passageway.

surfaces; or other'generally parallel surfaces may used which aresimilarly disposed for this purpose. This arrangement of course providesforslideably retaining the-bolt in a manner which does-not permit asubstantial degree of rotation in' the plane perpendicular to the twoparallel surfaces. A limited degree of rotation isper- "mitted',however, in another plane. j whichlimited rotation is permitted isperpen- This plane dicular to theintersection of the outwardlyconiverging locking surfaces. The simplest manner of securing theboltwithin the passageway to permitthedesired amount of rotation is to pro-'vide a bolt which has its maximum width restricted;to a veryshortdimension'measured generallytparallel'to thezaxis of the passageway. Inthis manner'the bolt is' permitted to rotate withoutjbeingdirectionally'confinedby the sides in 'the' same manner as the bolt isconfined by the parallel sides; The amount of rotation which the bolt ispermitted should be limited so that the bolt may not assume a positionin which it does not'ea'sily 'engage'the supporting surfaces. It is.also' preferable: that the rotation' be restricted to that amount whichwill not permit a locking-surface to form an" acute angle with respectto that The reason. forthis latter requirement is to facilitate thepassage of the bolt through the-apertur or the frontplat-e when'thedoor'is slammed shut, causing the bolt to be forced inwardly by theaction of the back orslant sunf-ace acting-against the strikerplateofthedoor 'j amb.

Since theboltis actingunder the influence of an outwardlyloiasing'means; some measure must be taken' .EOlLlIIlltlthoutward'm-ovement of the b'olt'so that'it does not advance-beyond alocking position; The stop meanswhich is provided for this purpose mayeither be in the form of shouldersi. which are disposed upon the sidesof the boltadjacent theolamping surfaces, or may be inthe-form of'afulcrum support which is disposedgenerally-intheplane of symmetry of thebolt. Whenthe'side-typc of stop is used, itoperates byengaging a portionof the front structure of the lock, which is usually a plate attached tothe structure forming the passageway. The contactof such ashoulder withthis structure; when combinedwith the outward force of a ful-crum'ty-pesupport is used with the fulcrum The two parallel sides D 'Qfi'fh'filocking portion maybe used as sliding the supporting surfaces.

substantially on such plane of symmetry, there is no such tendency tostraighten the bolt out and the bolt is then free to assume whateverangular position relative to the passageway that exterior forces mayurge it into. This latter type of stop means can be efiect-ivelycombined with a toggle-type of mechanism in a modification of thisinvention to=create anxunstablerbiasing means for the bolt which tendsto assist the bolt to assume a position wherein one of the clampingsurfaces is parallel to the wall of the passageway: With this type ofmechanism, the bolt is caused to snap definitely into a position whichit assumes when it engages the supporting surfaces. As a.door ispushedto a closed position, the first contact of the striker plate with thebolt causes the: bolttobe forced to the position shown in Figure 2,,since the force generated by the striker plate tips the bolt to aposition where the bolt is in such alignment as to be prepared to engageWhena toggle-typearrangement is utilized as above discussed,.suchalignment. of the bolt is rendered; positive; the bolt returning'tolockingposition in the'generally desiredalignment.

This invention will be describedby an analysis of the particularmechanisms and components which are illustrated'in the'accompanyingdrawings. Iri'thes'edrawings:

Figure l is a horizontal section through a door which is providedwit-h alatch embodying this invention.- The section is taken principallythrough the case and supporting-structure; with the parts and componentsleft in'full'lin-e.

Figure 2 is a section'of thesame mechanism shown in Figure 1, but in theretracted position.

Figure 3'is a schematic diagram of theforces which are applied to.the'bolt which permit itto function as'a latch;

Figure tie a top-view of the mechanism illustrated in Figure 1 with theupper half of the case removed to show the parts contained. This viewmay be considered to be in a vertical plane.

Figure 5shows a mechanism embodying a toegle-action biasing means.

Figure 6 is a section along the plane 6-'B of Figure 5,illustrating'principally an end View of the cross-head.

Referring to Figure l, the latch mechanism 10 isshown installed withinthe bore ll of the swinging door I2. This installation permits the latchbolt l 3to project outwardly'f'rom the surface M of the door whichcloses within the door jamb in order to accomplish the latching functionthrough engagementof said bolt with a suitable striker plate afiixed tothe jamib. The latch mechanism is generally contained withinthe'case 15which is comprised of the symmetrical halves ill. and 7. The bore 18 isdisposed to permit the'passage of a cross bar (not shown in Figure 1.)which cooperates with the roll-back members 19 and 26 to eiiectactuation of the retracting mechanism of the latch.

The general operation of the retracting mechanism can best bedescribed'by referring to Figures l, 2, and 4 together. The roll-backelements l9 and 26 are usually individually operable by cross-barsections associated with either side of thebore. Rotation of either ofthese rollbask members in either direction causes the cross head 2| tomove to the right due to the engagement of eitherof cam surfaces 2201123 with the outwardly turned care 24 or 25'. The ears 2d and'25 areformed integrally with the tension arms '26 and 21. the tension arms"being structurally attached to the plate 28 which has itssurface'generally perpendicular to the movement of the cross head. Theactuation of the cross head in a. direction to the right is opposed bythe action of spring 29 which bears against inner surface 36 of thecross head 2|. The opposite or right end of the spring 29 is supportedby the spring seat 3|, which in turn is supported by a shoulder 32 inthe case l5.

The outwardly turned ears 24 and 25 not only serve the purpose ofengaging the cam surfaces 22 and 23, 1111133150 serve to engage theguiding slots 33 and 34 which are located in the vertical surface 35 ofthe case I5. Preferably the ends 36 and 31 of the slots 33 and 34 are sopositioned as to act as limit stops to the movement of cross head 2|through the engagement of the outwardly turned ears 24 and 25 therewith.

The construction of the cross head 2| is preferably anintegral pieceformed by welding or otherwise attaching two symmetrical halves whichare "united on a plane which passes through the center of the latchmechanism parallel to the view shown in Figure 4. Figure 4 shows thelower half of the cross head having this type of construction, theupperhalf being identical thereto and having ears, arms, and surfaces whichare in all respects the exact opposite of those shown. The upper half Itof the case I is provided with slots similar to 33 and 34 for the guideand stop purposes previously described. Preferably, the two halves 38and 39 of the cross head 2| are joined together by a series of spotwelds along the tension arms 26 and 21 and their opposite equivalents.

Previous to the joining of the two halves 38 and 39 of the cross head2|, a retracting link 45 is installed within the aperture 4| which isformed in the plate 28 as indicated in Figure 6. Previous to suchinstallation of the link 46, the spring 42 is of course placed inposition, since this spring bears against the plate 28 in order tocreate the biasing force tending to urge the bolt |3 outwardlywithrespect to the door. The retracting link 46 and the aperture 4| areso proportioned that the link may slide therein and be permitted a smalldegree of articulation in the plane indicated in Figure 1. With themechanism indicated in Figures 1 and 4, it is clear that bolt l3 maymove inwardly from either of two causes. A striker plate which isintended to cooperate with the bolt may bear upon the slanted surface 43of the bolt i 3 when the door is slammed shut, thereby creating acomponent of force tending to push the bolt inward against the action ofspring 42. It is clear that under these conditions the cross head 2|remains in the position shown, the bolt |3 moving from theposition'indicated in Figure 1 to thats'hown in Figure 2. The bolt |3may also be caused to move inwardly by the action of the hand operatedretracting mechanism previously discussed which causes the cross head 2|to move to the right and take with it the retracting link 40, whichdraws the bolt |3 by means of the pivot connection indicated at 44.

The locking effect of the bolt i3 is best described by reference to theschematic diagram indicated in Figure 3. The biasing means which derivesits force from'the action of spring 42 maybe said to create an outwardforce 45 which acts at the pivot connection 44. The effect of the force45 is to firmly place the bolt E3 in engagement with the supportingstructure of the look. It will be noted that the bolt I3 is gen erallysymmetrical about a plane 46, and that the outer or looking portion ofthe bolt I3 is formed by the outwardly converging surfaces 41 and 48,together with the parallel surfaces 49 and 56'. diagrammed in Figure 3permits the bolt to be supported against the action of the locking force5| only when the bolt is in the outer or locking position. As bolt l3moves inwardly in the general direction indicated in Figure 2, theclamping surfaces of the bolt come out of engagement with the supportingstructure, and the bolt |3 no longer has the ability to maintain thealignment shown in Figures 3 and l. The clamping surfaces of the boltshown in Figure 3 include the clamping portion 52 of a locking surface48. The auxiliary clamping surface 53 is disposed to receive forcedirected at the surface 52. This requires that at least a substantialportion of the clamping surface 53 be positioned between perpendicularsfrom the ends of the'surface 52, thus creating an overlappingrelationship. Allocking force 5| not only generates a force within thesupporting structure to oppose it, but also generates a moment tendingto rotate a bolt l3 in a clockwise direction about the point 54, whichis due to the fact that the locking force does not act along the sameline as a force 55. An opposing moment to that previously described isgenerated by the cooperation of the rearward portion of the surface 52with the bolt supporting structure so as to generate a force 56. Ingeneral, the combination offorces 5| and 55 will create a clockwisemoment, while forces 55 and 55 cooperate to create an exactly equal andopposite moment which permits the bolt to maintain the position shown.

It is of course possible to provide a set of clamping surfaces which arenot directly related to the locking surfaces of the bolt, but thesimplest and preferred form is that indicated in the various figures ofthe drawings associated herewith. It will be obvious that the auxiliaryclamping surfaces 53 and 51 are respectively parallel to the surfaces 48and 41, and intersect the surfaces with which they do not cooperate forclamping action. It has been found most desirable to form the bolt i3 sothat the angle included between the sides 41 and 48 is approximately 45degrees. Regardless of such angle it is clear that with suitablemodifications of the supporting structure, the bolt I3 may be just aseasily supported in a position which is 45 degrees in a clockwisedirection from that indicated in Figure 3. The changes in structurerequired would be simply that the shorter supporting surface 58 and thelonger supporting surface 59 would be interchanged. i

The structure of the forward end of the latch mechanism illustrated inthe accompanying drawings provides for such an interchange. ofsupporting structures to permit the alignment of the bolt with eithersurface 48 or surface 4T in a position parallel to the generalretracting motion of the bolt. In this manner it is possible to adaptthe latch mechanism to a door which must swing in either directioneventhough the latch mechanism has been firmly fixed in place previousto the installation of the door.

Referring to Figure l the longer supporting surface designated by 59 inFigure 3 is formed *by the surface 60 of the lower half of the case IS.The shorter surface 58' indicated in Figure 3 has its counterpart in thesurface 6| which is provided by the front plate 62, and is firmly secu red in The type of bolt-supporting structure v more positive.

'position relative to the-balance of thelatch mechanism? through the:engagement of the extruded portions 63'- and iii-with an inner plate 65,the inner plate being securely attached to the case lirby'therivets 66andB'L The plate 62'is'held in thepositionshown in:-Fig ure 4 bytheaction of. the 'wood'screwswhich secure the latch-mechanism inplace-withirr the door.

A close examination -of plate BZ-WilL indicate that-the aperture 68 iseccentric with respect to the mounting portions -63 and 64. Since thesurfacet!" forms apartofthis-aperture, it is clear that'a rotation ofthe-front plate of 180 degrees in'aiplanegenerally parallel to thenormal position of thelplate'willcause the surface ell toassume thesame? position witharespect to the 'uppersurface 59 ofthe casethat itnow assumes with respect: to the surface 60, thereby creating :a set ofsupporting surfaces which will engage the auxiliary. surface and thesurface indicated at 43. Withsuchan alignment, the surface a TI, whichcanbe'designatedas a locking surface in Figurehbecomes a slantedsurface-serving the same'purposezas is-servedby surface with the boltdisposed as shown.

As the. bolt 13 moves outwardly from the position indicated in Figure2110' the locking position indicated in Figure 1, the auxiliary clampingsurface intercepts the outwardly converging'surface and createsa'tendencyfor the bolt toguide itself into engagement with whicheversupporting surfaces are then in position. If the bolt may be-assumedtobe in a position wherein the plane of symmetry is parallel to the axisof the passageway, the smaller supporting surface (ii I contacts thesurface43 atsome point and tends to urge the bolt l3 into the generalposition in dicated. This alignment of the bolt into a locking position.The stop means indicated in Figure 1' comprises the shoulders 12 and I3which engage the. projecting section of the front. plate to prevent.outward movement of the bolt beyond the point indicated.

Itis clear that the action of. v the stop meansin cooperation with thebiasing force ofthe. spring 42 tends to create a moment upon the bolttending to rotate itina clockwise direction. If. it. is. desired toeliminatesuch a i straightening moment, and to render the-action of thebiasing means somewhat positive withrespect to positioning the bolt foreither of the two locking positions, the arrangement indicated in Figure5 may be used. A fulcrum stop as indicated" at Hi may be used, and a.toggle actionbiasing means'may be usedin'conjunctiontherewith to rendera positioning action of the bolt It will be noted that the biasing meansis pivotally connected to the bolt at the point 15, and that the fulcrumstop 14 is disposedoutwardly therefrom where it contacts the frontstructure of the latch. mechanism. at a convenient point. Since thepivots M and 15 are generally locatedupon the plane of symmetry ofthebolt; it follows that the toggle action gen 'erated thereby would tendto cause the bolt to snap into either the position indicated, or one inwhich thebolt is disposed 45 degrees in a clockwise direction fromthatshown.

As the boltis being retracted under the influence of the forcesgenerated by a striker plate as isindicated-inv Figure 2, it isdesirable that some means'beprovided to control the amount of rotationwhich the-bolt may take as it passes inwardly within the confines of thepassageway provided by the case l5. The preferredform of the'bolt I3 isthat in which the outwardly converging surfaces 43 and II also act assliding surfaces as the bolt passes to a retracted position. It-isdesirable that the bolt not be permitted to rotate beyond a point inwhich the clamping surfaces are generally disposed to cooperate with thesupporting surfaces. To control this rotation, the outer extremities ofthe bolt may be provided with points which are adapted to engage thesurface of the passageway, or special rotation-limiting means such asthe abutments l6 and "H of link 40, maybe provided. Ineither case, it isdesirable that in the planeof the bolt indicated in Figures 1, 2, 3,-and5 that the outer extremities of the bolt beshort in the generaldirection in the bolt passageway. The alignment of the bolt in the planeindicated in Figure 4 is maintained without provision for rotation bythe action of the link dfl and-the parallel surfaces wand 19. It is alsopossible to provide for the alignment of the bolt in that plane simplyby theaction of parallel surfaces-alone, which is particularly simple inthe case where the surface 49 and 18 and those of 5%! and I9 are in thesame plane. This arrangementcan be achieved with small modification ofthe stop system.

Referring to Figure 6, a View is there shown which indicates theconstruction of the crosshead 2 l. The upper half 36 meets the lowerhalf 39 along a parting line which includes the 10- cating projectionswand 81, and the aperture 4|. The two halves 38 and 39 are placedtogether following the insertion of link 4%, and the tension arms 26 and21 are welded to'their counterparts 82 and'83.

Thev particular mechanisms and components shown and described herein arefor illustrative .purposesonly. The features of this invention have nowbeen fully described and are defined by the appendedclaims.

I claim:

1. In a latch mechanism having retracting means and a bolt with aplurality of locking surfaces, the combination of the following: a frontplate; locating means adapted to determine 'thelocation of said frontlate relative to said mechanism and engageable with said plate in one ofa plurality of-such' locations and means, for positioning said bolt topresent one of said locking surfaces in. looking positioncomprising anaperturein said frontplate, saidaperture being eccentricto said locatingmeans.

2. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, .the combination ofthe. following: a crosshead having transversely disposed surface andaxially disposed tension arms; a case having a guiding portion forslideably retaining said crosshead; means for inducing inward movementof said cross-head; and spring. means opposing said inward movemenusaidspring. means being confined between said tension arms.

3. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, the combination of'thefollowing: a symmetrical bolt having outwardly' converging lockingsurfaces and clamping surfaces parallel to each locking surface, saidclamping surfaces being disposed on opposite sides of said bolt from thelocking surfaces to which they are parallel and in overlappingrelationship thereto; guide means adapted to guide said bolt to and froma retracted position; biasing means urging said bolt outward; stop meanspreventing outward movement of said bolt beyond a locking position; andsupport-means disposed to closely engage one of said clamping surfacesand the locking surface parallel thereto when said bolt is in a lockingposition.

4. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, the combination of thefollowing: a symmetrical bolt having outwardly converging lookingsurfaces and a clamping surface parallel to each locking surface, saidclamping surfaces being disposed on opposite sides of said bolt from thelocking surfaces to which they are parallel and in overlappingrelationship thereto; guide means adapted to guide said bolt to and froma retracted position, said guide means having a front portion adapted toaccommodate said bolt in any angular relationship between and includinglocking positions corresponding to said locking surfaces; biasing meansurging said bolt outward; stop means preventing outward movement of saidbolt beyond a locking position; and support means having supportingurfaces disposed to closely engage one of said clamping surfaces and thelocking and in overlapping relationship thereto; means forming apassageway disposed to guide said bolt to and from a retracted position,said passageway having a front portion adapted to accommodate said boltin any angular relationship between and including locking positionscorresponding to said locking surfaces; biasing means urging said boltoutward; stop means preventing outward movementof said bolt beyond alocking position; and support means including a front plate having anaperture adapted to closely engage one of said clamping surfaces and thelocking urface parallel thereto when said bolt is in a locking position.

6. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, the combination of thefollowing: a symmetrical bolt having outwardly converging lockingsurfaces and a clamping surface parallel to each locking surface, saidclamping surfaces being disposed on opposite sides of said bolt from thelocking surfaces to which they are parallel and in overlappingrelationship thereto; means forming a passageway disposed to guide saidbolt to and from a retracted position, said passageway having a frontportion adapted to accommodate said bolt in any angular relationshipbetween and including locking positions corresponding to said lockingsurfaces; biasing means urging said bolt outward, said biasing meansincluding link means pivotally connected to said bolt on an axis locatedsubstantially on the plane of symmetry of said bolt and perpendicular tothe direction of retraction thereof; stop means preventing outwardmovement of said bolt beyond a locking position including abutment meansextending from said bolt substantially on the plane of symmetry thereofand in front of said pivot connection; and

10-- support means having supporting surfaces disposed to closely engageone of said clamping surfaces and the locking surface parallel theretowhen said bolt is in a locking position.

7. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, the combination of thefollowing: a symmetrical bolt having outwardly converging lookingsurfaces and clamping surfaces parallel to each locking surface, saidclampin surfaces being disposed on opposite sides of said bolt from thelocking surfaces to which they are parallel and in overlappingrelationship thereto; guide means disposed to guide said bolt to andfrom a retracted position, said guide means having a front portionadapted to accommodate said bolt in any angular relationship between andm eluding looking postions corresponding to said locking surfaces;biasing means urging said bolt outward; stop means preventing outwardmovement of said bolt beyond a locking position; support means including-a front plate having an aperture adapted to closely engage one of saidclamping surfaces and the locking surface parallel thereto when saidbolt is in a locking position; and locating means adapted to positionsaid front plate in alternate positions apart in a plane perpendicularto said guide means, said aperture being eccentric with respect to said10- cating means and disposed so that said alternate positions place thecenter of said aperture on opposite sides of the axis of said guidemeans.

8. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, the combination of thefollowing: a symmetrical bolt having outwardly converging lookingsurfaces and a clamping surface parallel to each locking surface, saidclamping surfaces being disposed on opposite sides of said bolt from thelocking surfaces to which they are parallel and in overlappingrelationship thereto; guide means disposed to guide said bolt to andfrom a retracted position, said guide means having a front portionadapted to accommodate said bolt in any angular relationship between andincluding locking positions corresponding to said locking surfaces;biasing means urging said bolt outward; stop means preventing outwardmovement of said bolt beyond a locking position; support means includinga front plate having an aperture adapted to closely engage one of saidclamping surfaces and the locking surface parallel thereto when saidbolt is in a locking position; and locating means adapted to positionsaid front plate in alternate positions 180 apart in a planeperpendicular to said guide means, said aperture being eccentric withrespect to said locating means and disposed so that said alternatepositions place the center of said aperture on opposite sides of theaxis of said guide means.

9. In a latch mechanism having retracting means, the combination of thefollowing: a symmetrical bolt having outwardly converging lockingsurfaces, a clamping surface parallel to each locking surface, and eachclamping surface intersecting another of the said converging lockmgsurfaces, said clamping surfaces being disposed on opposite sides ofsaid bolt from the looking surfaces to which they are parallel and inoverlapping relationship thereto; means forming a passageway disposed toguide said bolt to and from a retracted position, said passageway havinga front portion adapted to accommodate said bolt in any angularrelationship between and in-- cluding locking positions corresponding tosaid locking surfaces; biasing means urging said bolt 11 outward; stopmeans preventing outward movement of said bolt beyonda locking position;support means including a front plate having an aperture adapted toclosely engage one of said clamping surfaces and the locking surfaceparallel thereto when said bolt is in a locking position; and locatingmeans adapted to position said front plate in alternate positions 130apart in a plane perpendicular to the axis of said passageway, saidaperture being eccentric with respect to said locating means anddisposed so that said alternate positions place the center ofsaidaperture on opposite sides of said axis with oneedge of saidaperture that is opposite a looking surface in alignment with a side ofsaid passageway.

ALBERTF. LICK'IEIG, JR.

REFERENCES CITED Number Number 15 400,956

12 UNITED STATES PA ENTS,

Name Date- Ruggles Apr. 16, 1878 Russell Aug. 12, 1879 Ottinger July 25,1916 Epling Mar. 2'7, :191? Schlage Dec. .1, 1936 Kidder May 11, 1943Voight Feb. .20, :1945 Lickteig .Aug. :16, .1949 Wardwell .Feb. 14, I950FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Germany July .7, 1923 Ihe jollowingreferences are of record in the 20 111e of this patent:

